BEIJING (AP) – Chinese authorities have urged residents of two cities in southern Beijing to stay home for seven days as they try to eliminate a COVID-19 outbreak in which more than 300 people have tested positive in the past week.
The cities of Shijiazhuang and Xingtai in Hebei Province restrict people to their communities and villages and have banned rallies, according to notifications they posted on social media.
Hebei reported another 14 confirmed cases in the last 24 hours, bringing the total outbreak to 137. It found another 197 asymptomatic people who tested positive. China does not include such asymptomatic cases in the confirmed number.
Beijing is asking Hebei workers to provide proof of employment in Beijing and a negative COVID test before entering the nation’s capital. Chinese media reported several hours of backup copies at entry points on Friday.
In a separate outbreak, three more cases were reported in northeastern Liaoning Province, bringing the total to 84, since the first cases appeared about three weeks ago. Beijing recorded 31 cases in the same period, although none new in the last 24 hours.
In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region:
– India will start launching the coronavirus vaccination on January 16 to stop the pandemic in the second most populous country in the world. The Ministry of Health said on Saturday that priority will be given to health care and front-line workers, whose figures are estimated at about 30 million. These will be followed by those over 50 and population groups under 50 with comorbidities, numbering about 270 million, the statement said. Last week, India’s drug regulator granted emergency permits for the vaccine developed by Oxford University and British doctor AstraZeneca, and another developed by Indian company Bharat Biotech. AstraZeneca has contracted the Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine maker, to produce 1 billion doses of its vaccine for developing countries, including India. The Ministry of Health said both vaccines would be given in two doses. India is the second largest in the world behind the United States, with 10.4 million cases of coronavirus, including 150,798 deaths, according to the ministry.
– COVID-19 vaccines will be free in China, where more than 9 million doses have been administered so far, Beijing health officials said on Saturday. “Ordinary people will not need to spend money,” Zheng Zhongwei, an official with the National Health Commission, told a news conference. The announcement clarified the confusion at a news conference nine days ago, in which Zheng said it would be accessible, and a senior official, Vice Minister Zeng Yixin, jumped to say it would be free. The costs will be covered by a national health insurance fund and government funds. About 7.4 million shots have been fired since action began on December 15 to inoculate medical and transportation workers and other key groups ahead of the Lunar New Year, a major holiday in mid-February. More than 1.6 million photos had been taken in previous months. Zeng, the deputy minister, said that the specific time was set for a visit by a team of WHO experts on the origins of the virus and that he would be joined by Chinese experts from Wuhan, the city where new coronavirus cases were first detected . at the end of 2019. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed disappointment earlier this week that the Chinese side had not completed the necessary permits for the visit. Two members of the team who were already on their way had to return. Tedros said in Geneva on Friday that he expects the dates to be set next week.
– Several regional governments in Japan have called for a statement on the state of emergency, such as the one issued by the prime minister in the Tokyo area to stop the growing number of coronavirus cases. The heads of Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo prefectures in central Japan sent their request to Yasutoshi Nishimura, the minister responsible for coronavirus measures, in an online conference call on Saturday, Osaka Governor Hirofumi Yoshimura told reporters. There was no immediate decision, but the government’s group of medical experts will study the situation, Yoshimura said. Japan’s state of emergency, which began on Friday for Tokyo and near Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba, is centered around the demand for restaurants and bars to close at 8 p.m. It lasts a month, but can be extended. Gifu Prefecture announced its own one-month state of emergency on Saturday. Other prefectures can follow suit. Japan has recently seen more than 7,000 new cases a day, with more than 2,000 daily cases in Tokyo. Overall, Japan has confirmed more than 270,000 cases, including more than 3,900 deaths.
– Sri Lankan prison authorities have decided to release more than 100 detainees serving prison sentences for their inability to pay fines in an attempt to limit the spread of coronavirus in crowded units. About 4,121 detainees and 129 prison officers tested positive for the virus in five prisons in different parts of the island. Sri Lankan prisons are very crowded, with over 26,000 detainees in facilities with a total capacity of 10,000. On Saturday, prison officials said about 150 detainees serving prison sentences for failing to pay fines will be released under a special pardon announced by the government to ease the congestion. Authorities have been releasing prisoners for various reasons since December. To date, 10,227 prisoners have been released. Sri Lanka has confirmed a total of 47,304 cases of coronavirus, including 225 deaths.